I began my sport race 18 years ago and I became professional in 2002.
Some of my numbers:
Most outstanding since I am professional:
Hi Xavi,
Tell us, how has your professional bike rider career been and what challenges have you in mind?
I started by chance in '91 with a trial bike, my father brought me to Catalunya's Championship and I got hooked on competitions.
In '92, I took part in what was my first worldwide competition and a year after, I got my first 2 podiums at Polonia'93 and Japan '93. In '94 I tried trial motorbikes until '99, even competing with Jordi Tarrés, but a torn ligaments injury on my knee twice cut short my future in the motorbike world. In 2001 I went back to my first steps with trial bikes to try to make my dream come true: be a world champion.
To reach that I needed to be a professional, and that plus my injury made of it an almost impossible challenge...but I started looking for sponsors the could afford the races, and started training everyday...since then, I have been world champion in 2005, sub champion in 2006, twice sub European champion, break 3 Guinness records and 4 world records... and I'm still training...
How do you see the bike trial "health" scene nowadays?
That's the million dollar question, everything depends on how you look at it and who gives you a diagnose...but just to have an idea...Nowadays, of biketrial and/or Trial (UCI) we are 6, and if we can live on that, is because apart from the competitions, we take part in exhibitions and other things. You can draw your own coclusions!!
You compete on 24'' wheel, do you get some benefit of that?
Personally, I think that the 20'' wheel is almost discontinued, in fact in most countries only children use 20'' wheel and later they change it to 26''. The kind of obstacles you must face nowadays can be performed in a better way on 26'' wheels, the problem is that it lessens the agility of the bike. I think 24'' is a comfortable size as it enables you to apply both 20'' or 26'' technique. You can enjoy more the competition this way, and it gives you more possibilities. I'm the first rider competing on this kind of wheel, I know it has been risky as there isn't much material to work on this and I've had to experiment with geometry and adapt my own riding to 24''. The results are being good (Sub European champion)...This shows that I was right, and in few years we'll find more 24'' bikes in races than any other different type...
How did the idea of Monster Bike Part in Andorra come out?
It came out because I got really excited about another similar project and I felt a little bit left out of it, so when you want things to be done your own way, you have to do them yourself, and that's what I've done! I've opened a bike park with a different philosophy. I'm a person who has initiative, and I know it is a difficult moment to invest on something and start a business, but it was also difficult to become the world champion after a knee injury, and I made it...I hope I can say the same in 4 years time...
How do you see the Bike Park in a couple of years, what projects do you have in mind in the short and long terms?
Well, what am I gonna tell you...We are really excited and we still don't know if we can transform that into real success, but what we know for sure is that we want to offer an alternative perspective to all that exists nowadays in the Pyrenees. Our advantage is that we open 365 days a year, and that's an offer that still doesn't exist...We're working on create pulling tows, to work even better on the DH field.
What's the philosophy of Monster Bike Park?
Our philosophy is simple, we're a group of friends, and we're lucky to have 353 hectares at NATURLANDIA, which is one of the best mountains in the country to practice bike sports due to its situation and unevenness. We have the mountain, and we have started setting the first DIRT, WOODPARK, XC, TRIAL, FOAM PIT and DH with Elibike circuits. We're working on the pulling tows. Now it is the riders who have to continue its evolution, as I told you before, I want everybody to feel like they were at home, that's why we're doing it, so that joining everybody's efforts we can build it...
Proof of that are is the DIRTY WEEKENDS creation, from the first October weekend and every month weekend onwards, we'll have the DIRTY WEEKENDS, just to have an idea, it will be like the MONEGROS DESERT FESTIVAL but on bike...two non stop party days on bike. You'll find more information on _www.xaviksas.com_
What will visitors find?
People who come to our bike park will enjoy our XC circuits, of about 30km at a height of 1600m. Our DIRT circuit, with the highest Pyrenees drop, 4,3m and a ramp prepared for the backflip among others...a WOODPARK with different circuits where they will find drops, wallrides, peraltes and much more...trial bike zones for all levels, unevenness of 2000m, from 2800m to 800m, and our top product, the biggest FOAM PIT in Spain, a pool of 9x7m. All the circuits are set in one zone, where we have our shop-bar with terrace to have a break drinking Monster before going back to the riding!
An international racing cyclist? DANY MACASKIL
A song? BEST OF ME (SALIVA)
A woman? Wrong question, I like all the beautiful ones!
An injustice? We'll have to spend more pages on this question...
A film? MILLION DOLLAR BABY
A sound? I prefer silence, it gives me peace!
A motorbike? Highway one, Ducati 916, motocross Sherco 4T
A drink? MONSTER ENERGY
An idol? I don't have idols...I learned it when I was a child, they always disappoint you! I admire Valentino Rossi and Rafa Nadal.
In the last 5 years I have been creating companies with different activities but always related to the sport world.
At the moment I am the owner of a holding company " Heptagon Group, SLU" , that includes the following trademarks.
Eurobikes: company dedicated to organize sport events and schools of formation of Biketrial, Dirt, Freeride, BMX and DH. Also Eurobikes is the owner of Monster Bikepark located in Naturlandia (Andorra)
Podium BCN: agency of communication and marketing centered in the sport, besides doing management of sportsmen
Eagle: Distributor of sport material and nutrition for sportsmen.
Coldmedia: new project that surely is active in January 2010, will be a producer of videos and films very related to the sport.
